Hi all another question re: my timing belt change. Appreciate all the help and advice on this and other topics from the forum. I am changing the front oil seals and have a question.

I am having difficulty with the front crank seal. I reinstalled the new seal (oiled) but cannot seem to get in flush with the seal surface. Is anyone familiar with this issue? I honestly do not recall but seem to think that the original one was at least flush or a little deeper than flush.

I have tapped all the way around the seal and it is in evenly. It just does not seem to budge in any deeper. Will this likely cause an oil leak issue? If there were an issue, would it arise right away? (As in, is there a chance I will be driving one day and the seal will blow out?) Thanks everyone

Hi davegcc,

It sounds like it's stuck. You need to tap in more but you can damage the seal if you are not too careful. I made myself a pusher so that I don't have to tap with a small hammer. It's hard and takes time but it's doable. Good luck.

Hi Swedish Baklava,

I have an 85. I put the car together without the V-belts and started it, gave it a little gas and then shut it off. I did not see any oil leaking. I decided to get the car back together and then take it for a spin and see how the seal is. I am honestly uncertain whether I seated the seal correctly.

Your advice helped me get the a/c belt on. I still need to straighten the pump out and tighten it down as per your recent post. Then I will drive the car briefly and check out the seal situation.

Thanks for your advice and input. I have found that by getting this far the process gets much faster. I am learning each time I take it apart and put it back together. Not that I want to duplicate work needlessly, but if in the end I do not to disassemble to replace the oil seal I won't mind too much. The process will go much faster the second time around.

Hi davegcc,

Your seal needs to sit somewhere in zone "a". You can stuff your oil seal with petroleum jelly so that spring doesn't fall out while you are hammering* a little harder.

I have zero experience in 85 models so you have to wait for other folks to help you. Good luck.

*tapping

Swedish Baklava,

Thanks for all your help. Got it running and drove it twice around the block. So far so good - no oil leaks apparent yet. I do here a bit of a new hum which struck me as odd - possibly because I installed new fan belts that are riding differently? Also maybe just the sound of a new/different tensioner for the timing belt?

Also when listening closely under the hood, I thought I heard a very mild tapping at an idle. When I race the engine it seems to go away, except it comes back more pronounced as the RPMs die down. Would this be the infamous piston slap that B230s are known for? Just concerned /want to make sure that this was nothing I would have caused thru the timing belt installation, or anything. I did not turn the engine backwards more than a couple degrees to line up the timing marks and I tried not to move the individual cam/crank/intermediate sprockets once the belt was off, although I am sure they were bumped a bit.

I do believe the timing belt is on correctly - my guess is that if I was off a tooth I would definitely know it. And the car does not seem to display a loss of power or anything. Hopefully this is just mild piston tap that will go away once you get the pistons hot - I think they or the rings expand slightly?

appreciate any final advice you have for me - you have been a great help to me and I truly appreciate it.

Hi davegcc


"I do believe the timing belt is on correctly"

Did you check the timing belt alignment by rotating the crankshaft twice in a clockwise direction?


"possibly because I installed new fan belts that are riding differently?"

I am only familiar with a 1986 model year and up.


"Also maybe just the sound of a new/different tensioner for the timing belt?"

No, the sound shouldn't be any different.


--


Here are some interesting notes from my experience.


1. My mechanic put the timing belt and it was off by a tooth. I ran it around 20,000 to 30,000 miles. The belt sound was more audible but I didn't know.

2. My first timing belt job, it was off by 2 teeth. It sounded like super robotic frogs were singing.

3. I trimmed the seal plate gasket too short, the oil leaked as soon as I fired up the engine.

4. I used too much force to tap the crankshaft seal in place, it started to leak within few days. That was about 300-500 miles.

Thanks again Swedish Baklava

davegcc said.

"Do you know anything about installing the oil seals? I changed the front crank seal because it was leaking. I got the seal in nicely and evenly, however I could not get it quite flush with the sealing surface. It just seemed very tight and would not go in any further, so I left it at that. Will this likely pose an issue for me? From my past experience the smaller seals (intermediate and cam) seemed a bit easier to get in - more prone for that matter to get them in too far."

hi swede- your answer seems good especially if the new seals are not leaking . curious though about one thing since you have already done this job. assume you see these seals leaking when you do a timing belt job. do you pry them out with a special tool or just a small screwdriver? thanks tons oldduke

Hi oldduke,

This is my angle. It works for me.

thanks swede- good illustration. did you use a pipe nipple , a woodblock and a rubber hammer to install the new seal? thanks oldduke

Hi oldduke,

I realized that I don't have a great chiseling talent like Michelangelo so I made a pusher for myself.

Hi davegcc,

Does your seal looks like this? If yes, you need to drive in more until it levels with the outer metal ring. Like the intermediate seal shown right on top. Good luck.



ps

Double check your seal plate bolts & tighten them if necessary. Mine were really loose. That's the plate that holds your crankshaft and intermediate seal.